Why is lonelygirl15 so popular

What the ceremony ultimately entailed was the transfer of blood from a trait positive member to an Elder. This is a fate Bree eventually suffered, resulting in her season 1 death. Her story continued in subsequent videos with the original characters, including Daniel played by Yousef Abu-Taleb , as well as new characters who became tangled in this web. While the style and mystery clearly took inspiration from the film The Blair Witch Project , LonelyGirl15 was a precursor of its own.

It could also be argued that even regular, genuine vloggers owe some of their success to the web series, as it was the first YouTube channel to use product integration. They still manage to plague YouTube. YouTube is also a platform that has become a tool for recruiting digital cult members , and has acted as a microphone for people like Teal Swan to espouse their controversial spiritual guidance.

The filmmakers declined to identify the actress who played Bree. However, various websites Tuesday identified her as Jessica Rose, a year-old New Zealand native who attends acting school in Los Angeles. Rose could not be reached for comment. Contrary to Internet speculation that the videos were all shot at once and rolled out in dribs and drabs, the team revealed that each installment was filmed only after the previous one had been posted. But as the mystery unfolded on computer screens, fans who became obsessed with the series took the investigation in a direction the filmmakers had not expected, searching for their identities and the true nature of the production.

Having decided to remain anonymous, they found themselves unprepared. Teenage girls sympathize with her boy troubles and her sometimes-stormy relationship with her strict parents. Early on, viewers started emailing to offer advice and sympathy. Others wanted to talk dirty and discuss mathematical equations. Initially, they received curt replies: "Thanks. All the best, Bree.

Flinders was too busy writing scripts, so Beckett typed out the responses. Clearly, the team needed someone who could play Bree off camera as well as Rose did on video.

Goodfried, the lawyer, suggested his wife, Amanda, for the job. She could be trusted not to let the secret slip, so Beckett and Flinders agreed to bring her on. For Amanda, it was a welcome departure from her day job, where she answered phones and handled the demands of high-powered stars.

She never offered much information about her character. They responded enthusiastically and helped spread the word about the amazing new YouTube vlogger named Bree.

Her first handful of clips had been funny: She lip-synced a rap song, made fun of her friend Daniel, and danced around with a hand puppet named Purple Monkey. But now her tone had changed. Although she was hugging Purple Monkey, she seemed older.

The title of the video was "My Parents Suck …," and she explained that her religion prevented her from doing things that other kids did. It was the first time Bree was emotional on camera. Before heading out to a barbecue, Goodfried noticed a spike in hits. The previous videos had gotten between 50, and , views after a week, but this one logged 50, in its first two hours.

Beckett was at home trying to decompress. He had been working as an urgent care doctor to pay the rent and was exhausted. Within 48 hours, the video had half a million views. Goodfried knew that to be considered a success, a cable television show needs to get between , and , viewers. Viewers wanted family and relationship drama mixed with a rich, mysterious backstory that could be explored and debated. Some thought she was Mormon; others insisted she was a Satanist.

Another group tried to figure out where she lived: The leading guess was somewhere in the Midwest. Viewers spent hours Googling the possibilities and posting their results on YouTube.

In response to the feedback, Beckett and Flinders decided to focus on the tension between Bree and Daniel. When viewers suggested that he had a crush on Bree, they changed the story line to include a romance. On YouTube, a video can be streamed at any time.

It was a medium in its own right. She had been born there, and she would stay there. One viewer annotated each item with its SKU number. Could it be, one fan wondered, that the whole thing was an elaborate ad campaign for the retailer?

Meanwhile, the online celebrity started spilling over into the real world. Rose was browsing for a book in Santa Monica after "My Parents Suck …" was posted and noticed two girls watching her closely. That night, Amanda received an email from a fan: "Hi Bree. Rose, who was still an unpaid actress on the project, was about to start work as a waitress at TGI Fridays. Beckett panicked and called his parents. He needed a loan, he said, explaining that the series was taking off. I understand that we have certain beliefs and that means I can't do the same things as other kids all the time.

People looked at it and they said, "Oh wow, here's a girl and I may not relate to her specific problems but here's a problem that I really can relate to. Here's her with her boyfriend, and even if I can't relate to that specific problem I can relate to that angst," Flinders said. The phenomenon grew. There were tribute and parody sites. A band in Montreal built an exact replica of Bree's room for a music video.

Bree received so many e-mails, the guys were forced to bring in Greg's wife -- an entertainment lawyer -- to assume her online identity. Before long, this humble room became one of the most examined sets in the history of Internet entertainment. Sharp-eyed fans noticed the one clue placed by the storytellers early on -- a picture of Alistair Crowley, master of the occult.

This decidedly dark twist touched off a furious online debate over the religion of Bree's parents. And gaining force on the Internet message boards were the skeptics -- fans who believed Bree might be too good to be true.

I'd have to say the second or third video, we would have people commenting right on the page saying 'fake' or 'actress. You can ignore it," Greg said.